Match Made In Seconds
by A. Heimby
Summary: Reddington didn't miss a thing. He certainty hadn't missed the looks that Agent Ressler threw at Lizzy when he thought no one was looking, and he didn't miss Lizzy's apparent need to be there for Ressler, to protect and comfort him. He noticed the pull they had on each other from day one, even if neither of them saw it. He decided, it was time they did. (Set around after 1.19)
1. Chapter 1

Reddington didn't miss a thing. If it happened, he knew about it. He certainty hadn't missed the looks that Agent Ressler threw at Lizzy when he thought no one was looking, and he didn't miss Lizzy's apparent need to be there for Ressler, to protect and comfort him. He noticed the pull they had on each other from day one, even if neither of them seemed to.

That was why, after another night of sitting and holding a heart broken woman in his arms, Red came to the decision that it was time the two did notice. He loved comforting Lizzy, getting to hold her close as he ran his hand through her hair to calm her, but it was killing him to see her like this, to see her in so much pain. Without her knowing his true connection to her he would never be able to be enough of a comfort to her. She needed to feel loved, be it paternal or romantic, and since he was far from ready to tell her the truth it would have to be romantic, meaning he had to find her someone. He didn't even entertain the thought of really looking because he knew automatically it had to be Donald.

After coming to the decision that it was best to fill the hole in Lizzy's heart with what she had lost, a loving partner, he started to formulate how to make that happen. He paid yet more attention to the two whenever they were working on a case, carefully observing how close they got, how often they touched, and more so in Donald's case, how often they stared. He wanted to know how far they had gotten on their own and how much he would have to push them together.

He also watched them individually; he watched for signs of how far Donald had gotten in grieving over Audrey and how closed off Lizzy had gotten since the light had been shone on Tom, he watched how they interacted with others compared to how they interacted with each other. He watched to make sure that it truly was a possibility before he put in any real effort to match them up.

It only took a few days for him to conclude that it was more than possible; that if time had permitted it, they would have most likely gotten there themselves, eventually. Time, however, was not on their side so he would have to expedite things a little. He had to do it for Lizzy, and he wanted to do it for Donald as well. He enjoyed messing with the man but he was a good person who deserved to be happy, and Red knew that Lizzy would make him happy, as would he make her happy.

It was with that in mind that Red decided what his first move to push these two together would be.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Red walked into the post office, looking cool, calm and collected as always, but there was a glint in his eyes; a mischievous glint that put everybody on edge slightly but that they ultimately ignored. It wasn't like they had never seen it before.

Elizabeth was the first one to say anything as they started to gather around the table that served as a meeting place. She studied his face for a second before furrowing her brow in question and asking, "What are you up to, Red?" She pursed her lips slightly as she shifter her weight before observing, "You look like you're planning something."

Red simply laughed, saying, "When am I not planning something, Lizzy?" She seemed to consider this for a moment before nodding slightly and looking away. It seemed like it was enough of an answer for her, at least for the moment. He knew better than to think she had dropped it completely. She was like him in that sense, once she wanted to know something nothing would stop her from eventually finding out.

Not half a minute later Red was smirking to himself as Agent Ressler came toward the table, stopping on the other side of Lizzy. He didn't miss the fact that it was closer then was generally acceptable in a work place between 'colleagues'. They just couldn't stay away from each other, be it conscious or not; they were drawn to one another.

Agent Ressler looked at him in a similar way to how Lizzy had, only more suspicious. Red's smirk only grew as Ressler leaned toward him, resting his elbow on the table, effectively invading Lizzy's personal space, as he asked with a slight glare, "What are you plotting this time, Reddington?"

Sending the Agent a sly grin, Red told him, "Oh, don't worry, Donald. You'll know in due time." Unlike Lizzy, Ressler was far from satisfied with the answer he had gotten. Instead he intensified his glare, letting out a low frustrated growl as he stood up straight again.

He seemed to take a moment to pull himself together, but once he had he instead turned to Lizzy and the two exchanged meaningless small talk while they waited for Cooper. Red simply stood off to the side and listened. After all, you never know when something useful may be revealed.

By the time Cooper did show up Reddington was a little disappointed. The conversation between the two had been filled with them lying to each other about how things were. Donald pretending he was completely over everything that had happened with Audrey, and Lizzy acting like everything at home was better than ever. It had actually been a relief when Aram and Meera had shown up because it proved to be a distraction from the looks the two were throwing at one another that clearly said they didn't believe a word that the other was saying.

Red refocused his attention after Cooper cleared his throat. Cooper didn't even bother saying anything, simply indicating Red with a small wave of his arm. Red told them about a blacklister that operated out of Canada. In truth, compared to others on the list, the man was small potatoes, but really anybody who made it on the list was worth stopping. This man in particular ran a camp deep in the mountains that offered up the services of hunting. When he had gotten confused looks at his description, he clarified one thing, saying, "People pay him to hunt things that are illegal to hunt, and recently, it has come to my attention that he has moved up to offering the most dangerous game."

It was Ressler who first got the reference as he blurted, "He's letting people pay to hunt other people?" A look of distaste was on his face as he said the words and the look quickly spread to the other four people around the table.

Red kept his face blank as he simply nodded. Lizzy was the next to speak as she asked, "Who exactly is being hunted? Surely a bunch of missing people would be noticed by the police up there."

This time Red let the grimace cross his face as he said, "He's smart. When he does kidnap people he makes sure to spread out the disappearances over the whole of the country, which in itself is no easy feat, and speaks of a vast network, or at least a well placed one. He also has the people who pay to hunt sometimes, unknowingly, hunt each other, which in itself in ingenious." Red paused, thinking, before he started again. "The thing that's concerning, however, is that he has started crossing the border, taking people from here as well. He is getting bolder and seems to be expanding his business. It worries me what that may entail."

Meera looked thoughtful as she asked, "But if his network is as vast as you think, or well connected, how will we even be able to take it all down, dissolve the operation?"

Red smiled at her as he answered, "Ah, well, in this case Agent Malik, I think that 'cutting the snake off at the head' is very fitting. As far as I can tell, if he falls, it all falls."

After a few more minutes of discussion, of forming a game plan, they all split off, getting ready to leave as soon as possible. Cooper had to clear things with the Canadian government before his team left. Red, in the meantime, had his own plan swinging into action. He had a few things to verify before they left.

As they were leaving he couldn't keep the grin off his face as he watched Ressler pick up Lizzy's bag as well as his own. This would be easy. They already had the feelings, that much was obvious; it was just a matter of getting them to let those feelings show.

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_**Sorry for the short chapters, they should pick up size now.** _


	3. Chapter 3

Red's plan started the second they got on the FBI's jet. There was limited seating, most of all because they would still have to talk about the case on the flight over, so they had to be close to each other. As they were entering the jet Red "accidentally" knocked a folder out of Ressler's hands, sending papers spilling to the floor. Much like he predicted, Lizzy stooped down to help the other agent pick them up. It took up enough time so that by the time both were standing again there were really only two free spots, right next to each other, on a small couch across from a table where the other four were already seated.

The two didn't think twice about it as they sat down, shoulder to shoulder, although Ressler still sent a glare toward Reddington, doubting it had been an accident that he hit his folder out of his , he had simply assumed Red was messing with him, after all, it was a known fact that one of Red's favorite things to do was to mess with and make fun of Agent Ressler.

Although it was not a terribly long flight, only about four hours, it only took the first half to talk about the case. Liz provided the profile while Ressler talked about and offered up strategies for dealing with that profile. Once they had a set plan of action they all sat back to relax for the rest of the flight. Not long after Liz had fallen asleep, head resting on Ressler's shoulder.

Red watched discreetly as Ressler let himself smile down at her before resting his head on the back of the seat, closing his own eyes as well, although it was obvious he had no intentions of falling asleep. Red could tell he was simply enjoying the closeness of Elizabeth at his side.

He had to keep the smile off of his own face as they started to descend. Ressler had looked concernedly down at Lizzy before gently saying her name in her ear, trying to wake her. When all that did was make her bury deeper into his side a look of consideration crossed Donald's face before he shook his head slightly. This time he tried waking her up with a hand on her shoulder. When she blinked open her eyes, looking up at Don with a sleepy smile, Red could see a blush creeping onto the Agents face before he sent a slight, awkward, smile back. The Agent didn't take his eyes off his partner as she sat up stretching, looking refreshed from the nap.

As they were heading to the cars to go to the hotel Red would be paying for, meaning it was a very nice one, Red made sure Don and Lizzy were in the same car. He wanted it to just be the two of them, but they had both insisted that he ride with them. He figured they were still suspicious of his motivations. He didn't blame them, in fact he was actually a little proud of them for it. After all, their instincts were right; they were just jumping to the wrong conclusions.

The drive to the hotel was made in silence. Red was happy to notice is wasn't an uncomfortable silence or a heavy one, just a simple, content silence. Neither of the agents felt a need to fill it, so he didn't either. He took the time to further his observations of them when alone, well, alone-_ish_.

Reddington put another part of his plan into action when they arrived at the hotel. He had made sure the others arrived ahead of them so it would seem less suspicious when they got the news; even though they should have been the second they found out Dembe flew out ahead of them on one of Red's private jets. Copper delivered the news as he handed over a key card to Ressler, saying, "Looks like the hotel made a mistake with the booking. They only put us down for four rooms instead of six, and since you were the last to arrive, you two can share the last room." Cooper couldn't help the slight smirk that graced his face for a second as Ressler slowly reached out for the card, trying not to look as flustered as he felt.

Knowing how to make sure the blame stayed off him, and on the hotel, Red asked in an annoyed tone, "At least tell me their room has two beds." He wasn't the best at what he did for nothing because the second he got a negative to his question he grabbed the card from Ressler's stiff hand and added, "Well then Dembe and I will switch rooms with you, it's not like we ever sleep at the same time anyway." As Dembe handed Elizabeth the rooms key card Red started walking away, smirking the second his back was turned. There was no way they would figure out what he was planning anytime soon. After all, he had just put more space between them, at least at a superficial level. Though, really, he had just made it so they would be more comfortable with the current situation. Instead of thinking about the fact they had to share a small space, now they would be thinking about the fact they had gotten out of having to share a bed and the discomfort that would have entailed. Much like if you were told you were going to be killed, but instead just got a gunshot wound. In any other circumstance you would never be happy to get shot, but if in the end you didn't die, you might just look on it a little differently.

Once the doors to the elevator were closed and Dembe and Red were alone, the latter smiled as he looked to his old friend and asked, "So I trust things went smoothly when you arrived?"

Dembe chuckled slightly as he said, "Of course. Mr. O'Neal was more than happy to help when he saw the generous tip you sent ahead with me." He looked to his boss as he added, "Although I think he would have done it either way when he found out what we were up to."

Laughing, Red replied, "No, I wouldn't be surprised if that were true. There are just so many romantics in the world these days."

THEBLACKLISTSILKCALBEHT

After Reddington's departure Ressler cleared his throat somewhat awkwardly before saying, "Well then, I guess we should head up and get settled." He looked at his watch, it was only a little past four DC time, meaning it was around two there. He frowned slightly at the awkward timing as he added, "I don't think we have much time to get anything done today," he looked to Cooper as he said, "Maybe we should head out for a early dinner once we're unpacked and settled?"

Cooper frowned down at his own watch for a second before looking up with a smirk as he replied, "Only if it's on Reddington's dime." Cooper then started toward the elevators as he grumbled about time zones and jet leg. As they all squished into the elevator he added, "Calgary better have some damn good food."

Once they had separated, going into their own rooms, things became a little less comfortable between Ressler and Keen. They dealt with their bags in silence and once that was done, they read their case file in silence. They both felt like making a comment on the current sleeping arrangements, something to lighten the tense mood, but both worried it might only make it worse. It was only after an hour of reading over the sparse file over and over that Ressler finally broke, unable to handle the silence anymore.

He slapped the file down on the small coffee table in front of the couch he was sitting on as he said, "Well, I don't think there is a single comma in this file I don't know by heart now." Donald sighed as he leaned forward and held the bridge of his nose.

Smiling slightly, Elizabeth agreed, saying, "You're telling me. I know this is more information then we usually get straight off the bat, but it's still very little." She softly put her own file down on the small end table beside the chair she was in as she looked down at her watch. It was about four thirty local time, which meant dinner time to them, so she stood up as she added, "We should probably get ready for dinner. Reddington wants us down stairs in fifteen and he said to dress nice."

Ressler rubbed his chin as he nodded absent minded. When Liz had disappeared into the bathroom he took the chance to change. He was looking at himself in the mirror as he tightened his tie and suddenly started feeling self-conscious. He frowned as he took off his suit jacket, deciding he liked it better that way. Then he took off his tie but quickly put it back on. He was debating taking it off again when he heard the bathroom door open. He was barely able to stop his jaw from dropping as Elizabeth stepped out. She was wearing a beautiful blue sleeveless dress that just went past her knees. She had also let her hair down so it flowed nicely onto her shoulders. For a moment he simply stared at her, his hands still on his tie, before finally managing a raspy, "You look really nice, Liz."

Looking at Donald for the first time since coming out, Liz smiled sweetly, saying, "You look nice to Donald, I like you without the jacket." At that she took a step forward and batted his hands away as she loosened his tie and added, "Maybe lose the tie too." As she slipped it from around his neck Donald held his breath.

They simply stared at each other for a moment until there was a knock at the door. Seconds later Aram spoke from the other side of it, "Reddington said it's time to leave for the restaurant." Without another word they each took a step back and grabbed what they needed before heading for the door, the previous moment forgotten, or at least attempted to be forgotten.

It wasn't until they were alone in the elevator headed down to the lobby that Ressler suddenly thought of something, "Hey, why haven't you called Tom yet? Is he away at a convention, again?"

Even though she knew he would see straight through it she felt like she had no other choice because she didn't want to lie to Ressler, so she deflected the question with her own, asking, "How do you know I haven't?"

He frowned at her slightly as he said, "Because I've been with you almost every minute since Red brought this to us this morning. I would have noticed you calling your husband." Even though most people would have missed it, Donald noticed the way she winced slightly at the word husband. Warning bells had been going off in Ressler's head for a while now where it concerned Tom Keen, but now it wasn't a simple bell, it was a blaring alarm and all he wanted to do was ask about it, make Liz tell him what was wrong, but he knew better than to try and force her to talk. She was trying to hide it from him which meant he'd get nothing but a brush off at best. As Elizabeth stepped off the elevator Don couldn't help the frown that pulled at the corners of his mouth. He only managed to fight it off his face as they approached the others. He would drop it for now, but not for long.


	4. Chapter 4

_**I am way out of practice with my writing so please be gentle. Oh, and sorry this took so long to update. (Not edited yet)  
**_

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Red ended up bringing them to one of the premier restaurants in all of North America. There was an eight course meal, every course better than the last. The seven of them found themselves having fun for what felt like the first time in years. They all took turns telling outrages stories from their pasts, Red beating everybody out of course with story after of story of the things he had done in his life. Even Cooper joined in on the spirt of things, telling them all how he _actually _met his wife which blew even Red's mind a little.

By the time the dessert came they had all had their fair share of wine and were all relaxed as they chatted about nothing in particular. Liz, who was really starting to feel the wine, was leaning slightly against Ressler, though she wasn't paying very much attention to it; Red, however, was. He looked to his old friend with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, silently conveying, "See, I told you, didn't I?"

Donald, much like Red, was also very aware of the fact. Red could see it in the way he leaned back into Lizzy and by the fact there was a faint red blush creeping slowly up Donald's neck and onto his cheeks and ears. The blush only grew stronger when Liz offered up a bite of her Swiss chocolate cake to Ressler, insisting he had to try it. He had only hesitated a second before accepting the bite of cake but was instantly happy he had once he tasted it, and once he saw how pleased Liz seemed that he liked it. After that Liz would hold out a bite of the cake every few minutes and Ressler would happily, if not a little awkwardly, accept it. Both seemed oblivious to the fact everyone at the table had started to stare every time that they did, but at the same time, they could have simply been ignoring it.

The ride back to the hotel was quiet. Though it was still early in the evening, local time, they were all jet legged and tired. Meera was sleeping, leaned up against Aram's side, while Liz was asleep on Ressler's shoulder for the second time that day. Cooper looked at the two couples across from him in the limo with a faint smile showing on his face, while Dembe didn't bother to lessen the smile that stretched from ear to ear. Red, though he was smirking on the inside, kept his face blank. Ressler kept sending uncertain looks in his direction and he didn't want to give anything away. Instead he would raise a questioning eyebrow at the younger man and Donald would look away again, either out the window or back toward Lizzy.

When they arrived back Red was quick to usher out Cooper behind Dembe with Meera and Aram right behind him, leaving Ressler without any prying eyes as he tried to wake up a sleeping Lizzy. Though Red wanted to stay and watch he told himself it would only hinder their progress, so instead he continued to usher the others inside.

Donald was once again unsuccessful as he tried to coax Liz awake with words; even when he gently shook one of her shoulders she only opened her eyes for a second before closing them again. Liz hadn't slept properly in far too long, and feeling all cozy, warm and safe against Ressler's side was too much for her to fight. She was tired and for the first time in a long time, she felt safe enough to sleep. She knew she could trust Ressler to have her back, so she simply gave in to the need. Donald, realizing she was not going to be waking up without a fight, simply decided to pick her up, with a little help from the driver, and carry her in himself. He had seen the strain on her face recently, how tired she seemed to always look, so he didn't want to stop her from getting the rest she obviously needed. Though his back protested slightly by the time he was gently placing her on her bed he didn't pretend for a second he hadn't enjoyed the feeling of her nestled against him, her face pressed into his neck. As he took off her shoes and pulled the blanket over her he even let himself smile, truly smile, as he looked down at her sleeping peacefully.

He couldn't resist pushing a rebellious strand of hair from her face as he thought about how young she looked, or rather how much she actually looked her age when sleeping. Sometimes he had to remind himself how young she was because the stress of their jobs already showed up on her, making her look older through the looks on her face and in her eyes, though he had realized it was worse of recent. That was how he ended up spending the rest of his night contemplating Liz and all that she had recently been through. He was sure there was something he was missing, something recent, because though the job had been getting to Liz before, it had not been getting to her this much. There had been no major case he could think of that could have caused the change he saw in her; the haunted and pained look he could always see in her eyes, no matter how big of a smile she had plastered on her face. That left him with only one conclusion, whatever it was that had happened, it hadn't been at work. It was something from her personal life, and if he were to bet on it, he would bet it had something to do with Tom; after all, he already knew something was going on there. Not for the first time, Ressler hoped he was wrong, he hoped Liz was happy, that her marriage was happy. He hoped that whatever it was, it was nothing to serious.

THEBLACKLISTSILKCALBEHT

Liz woke with a start. She couldn't remember how she had gotten to bed but when she looked over to see Ressler sleeping in the bed that was beside hers she felt herself relax. As she tried to remember she had a vague feeling that someone had carried her to bed. Then she remembered feeling comfortable and warm, nuzzling her face into someone's neck, the smell putting her even more at ease. She also had an unclear memory of someone brushing the hair from her face, a thumb stroking her forehead, but taking in a deep breath as she yawned, she told herself she must have dreamt that part, or completely made it up in her own head.

At the sound of Liz waking up, Donald found himself being pulled from a restless sleep. What little sleep he had managed to get had been filled with nightmares. His brain had showed him countless ways Tom could be hurting Liz, everything from cheating on her to beating her. As he looked over at her stretching he even found himself checking for any evidence of physical abuse. Though he saw none his brain still told him that was far from proof that it wasn't happening.

Neither said anything as they got up and ready for the day. Their morning routines seemed to mesh perfectly, not getting in each other's way or hindering the other, and because of this they were ready quickly and headed down for breakfast before the others. Only Reddington was already down stairs when they got there, he was enjoying his cup of tea while he ate his breakfast.

He smiled warmly as he gestured to a couple seats and said, "Good morning Lizzy, Donald. You should try the pancakes; they are probably some of the best I have ever had in my life." When the two sat down without a word he asked, "I trust you both slept well?"

Donald simply looked at Red with a tired and blank stare, intriguing Red to dig deeper, but he put that thought on the back burner as Lizzy answered with a smile, saying, "I don't think I've slept that well in years." Red smirked slightly when he saw that put a small smile on Donald's face.

Letting the smirk turn into a true smile he turned back to look at Lizzy as he observed, "You do look refreshed, which is refreshing." He chuckled at his own joke as he further observed, "Whatever you did last night you should do again. A restful sleep, a truly restful sleep, should never be taken for granted." Liz could only respond with a smile before a waitress had shown up to take their orders. Red was pleased when she automatically ordered the pancakes, and amused when Donald pretended to think it over before ordering the same.

Not long after the waitress left they were joined by the other four of their group. Breakfast was a fast thing after that. Everybody else ordered and before long they were all finished and headed to the local RCMP building. There they would meet up with some local feds and start their investigation.

The day wound up being rather uneventful. The Canadian feds had just as little information about the disappearances as them, but they were able to figure out a pattern for the victims being chosen. They were all low risk targets with no family to miss them who lived on the street. By the time they left the RCMP building they had a list of probable victims, a rather large list considering the only people even reporting them missing were others on the streets, meaning there were probably even more that never got reported.

They were all a little frustrated as they headed back to the hotel, simply picking up fast food on the way. They knew they'd spend hours yet working the case in their hotel rooms, so they just wanted something quick and simple. With murmured goodnights they all headed off to their separate rooms.

It was after Liz and Ressler had finished their meal in a comfortable silence that Ressler found himself observing, "You still haven't phoned Tom." When Liz only responded with a blank look he further observed, "He also hasn't called you once since we left." Though he knew, technically, that he might be wrong, that in one of the short moments he and Liz weren't together she could have called Tom, or that he could have called her, he somehow knew he wasn't. Liz seemed to freeze on the spot, though Ressler could see something trying to fight its way through. It was only after a quick flash of pain and hatred crossed her face that he asked, concerned, "What's going on Liz?" When it looked like she was about to brush it off he put up a hand and said, "Don't say nothing, something has been off for a while now and I know it has something to do with Tom."

What happened next he would have never seen coming, not in a thousand years. If he had he would have found a better way of broaching the subject, but he hadn't, so instead he found himself looking at Liz as her face seemed to crumble. One hand came up to her mouth as she started to sob, the other wrapping around her waist while she curled in on herself, seeming to try and hide her face as the sobs grew more and more intense. After getting over the initial shock of seeing Liz break down Ressler was on his feet and gathering her in his arms. Standing at her side he crouched down giving her a slightly awkward hug. After a moment she returned the hug causing Ressler to drop to his knees as she pushed off the chair and into his arms, burying her face into his shoulder and neck. When she showed no sign of stopping Ressler picked her up off the floor and slowly brought her to the bed. Much like the night before he gently lowered her onto the bed, but unlike the night before she would not let go, so that's how he found himself lying back against the bed board while he held a crying Liz to his chest, whispering comforts as he rested his chin on the top of her head. After a while they were both asleep, wrapped in one each others arms, the case forgotten for that moment in time.


End file.
